Nevada Solar One

“Nevada Solar One generates enough energy to power more than 14,000 homes annually.”

Location: Boulder City, Nevada
Technology: Concentrating Solar Power (CSP)
Construction completed: June 2007
Size: 400 acres, 64 MW
Projected CO₂ emissions avoided: Equivalent to taking 20,000 cars off the road annually

Nevada Solar One is an environmentally friendly, reliable and renewable utility-scale power solution – creating power without creating carbon. The 400-acre, 64-megawatt plant harnesses solar energy to power more than 14,000 homes every year. It is the third largest of its kind in the world and the first such plant built since 1991. Nevada Solar One represents a major renewable energy success story and has the potential to compete directly with conventional fossil-fuel-powered technologies. The plant has helped make Nevada the largest per capita producer of solar power in the U.S.

About the technology – concentrating solar power

Nevada Solar One uses proprietary technology to track the sun’s location and concentrate its rays during peak demand hours. The plant employs 760 parabolic concentrators with more than 200,000 mirrors that concentrate the sun’s rays onto more than 18,200 receiver tubes. Fluid that heats up to 735°F flows through these tubes and is used to produce steam that drives a conventional turbine generator that produces electricity.

Why we did this project

ACCIONA Solar Power recognized the potential for CSP generation in the Southwestern U.S. and built Nevada Solar One to demonstrate that this technology could perform on a commercial scale. The building of CSP plants in the U.S. could augment and eventually replace fossil-fired power plants, leading to a zero carbon electricity grid in just a few decades.

How the project is sustainable

Nevada Solar One went on-line in June 2007, creating over 800 construction jobs during building and approximately 30 permanent operation jobs. All of the power generated is purchased by Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Resources under long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs). Nevada Solar One reduces the amount of CO₂ emissions emitted at a rate equivalent to 20,000 cars.

Bringing value to the community, the company and the environment – that’s sustainability.